Fast food fans agree that you really can’t beat the simple pleasure of a perfectly executed burger. But which fast food burger is the greatest? From fast food 'flops' that were actually pretty great to historic recipes that have barely changed over the years, we reveal the world's best fast food burgers of all time – counting down to the tastiest of them all.

Click or scroll through our gallery to see where your favourite fast food burger comes on our list – and if it makes the cut at all.

Our ranking is based on reviews, accolades and the popularity of each burger, taking into account sales, longevity and the reaction to the products at the time of their release. This list is unavoidably subjective.

Arby's is perhaps best known for its roast beef sandwiches, but when the chain dropped a limited-run burger onto the menu for the very first time in 2022, fans sat up and took notice. The reaction was so positive that Arby's added burgers to the permanent menu two years later, and the pick of the bunch is the Deluxe Burger. It's a classic combination of a thick beef patty, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles, and burger sauce. It might even persuade you to forego the famous roast beef.

Once upon a time, Burger Chef was America’s second-largest burger chain, with almost as many locations as McDonald's. The fast food giant opened its first restaurant in 1954 in Indianapolis, Indiana and pioneered selling a hamburger, fries and a drink as a complete meal. Burger Chef’s signature item and top-seller (until the company collapsed in 1996) was the Big Shef, a double flame-cooked beef patty with American cheese, lettuce and the chain’s secret sauce. Hardee’s, which took over Burger Chef in 1981, briefly resurrected the Big Shef burger for a limited time in 2001, 2007 and 2014 at select Midwestern locations.

If you're going to name your fast food restaurant Better Burger, you absolutely have to deliver on your promise. Luckily, the cheeseburger served at small New Zealand chain Better Burger is indeed a superior meal. It features a freshly smashed beef patty topped with red onion, cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle and the joint's secret burger sauce. Plus, Better Burger has one eye on sustainability, offering premium ingredients wrapped inside compostable packaging. Nice.

A&W is pure Americana, but it has a surprising number of international branches, too. At last count it had approximately 600 restaurants in the US and 400 outside of the States, mostly dotted around Southeast Asia. The burger menu is simple and concise, championing classic cheeseburgers of various sizes. Our pick is the signature Papa Burger, featuring two juicy US beef patties and two slices of melted American cheese, finished off with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles and tangy A&W Papa Sauce (which fans rate as one of the best burger sauces out there).

Set up in 1953 under the name Top Hat Drive-In, Sonic Drive-In has since expanded to more than 3,500 locations across the US. Our order of choice is the SuperSONIC Bacon Double Cheeseburger, packed with two seasoned beef patties, two slices of melty American cheese, crispy bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayo. Do yourself a favour and get one of the chain's delicious frozen drinks to go with it, too.

Mostaza, a burger chain that’s been going strong since 1998, is the second biggest fast food brand in Argentina, behind McDonald's. Loyal fans will tell you that Mostaza’s burgers are bigger, more original and better value than their McDonald's counterparts. A solid go-to for anybody venturing to Mostaza for the first time is the Double Cheese Jr. It's a double layer of beef patties, ketchup, cheese, onions and mustard, and it tastes as good as it looks.

Burger King’s (or, in Australia, Hungry Jack's) Burger Shots consisted of a figure of eight–shaped patty topped with mustard, ketchup and pickles and served on linked buns. Sold in two- or six-piece packs, they were introduced in 2009 – but they didn’t stay around for long, despite having a small but loyal following. This wasn’t the chain’s first foray into the miniature burger world; it introduced a set of mini patties called Burger Bundles in 1987, but they stayed on the menu for less than a year.

MAX Burgers opened its first burger bar in 1968, five years before McDonald’s arrived in Sweden. But MAX sets itself apart from the fast food crowd with its focus on sustainability – even stating the amount of carbon dioxide emitted per item on its menu. Crucially, though, the food is delicious, and its latest invention, the Brooklyn Tribute, is blowing people's minds. A spin on the legendary Emmy Burger (crafted at New York institution Emily) it features a Swedish beef patty, gochujang mayo, melted Cheddar, onions, lettuce and pickles in a toasted frisco bun.

This diminutive burger is at the heart of a massive burger empire, albeit one that has no plans to expand outside of the US. Many consider White Castle the first fast food burger chain, and its signature Original Slider has been on the menu for over 100 years. In 1947, White Castle patented a unique method of stamping five holes into each slider to lock in flavour and speed up the cooking process. Its burgers are still made the same way today: steam grilled with onions and pickles and dished out by the sackful. We say the Cheese Slider is the best of all.

Founded in 1946, Original Tommy’s may only be a small chain (with locations across California and Nevada), but it’s become renowned for its tasty chilli-topped double cheeseburger. The golden bun comes loaded with two juicy 100% beef patties, American cheese, a dollop of fresh, lightly spiced chilli, pickles, tomato and mustard. The chain is known for sourcing high-quality ingredients, and for being generous with its serving sizes. It offers extra portions of chilli, mustard, onion and tomato for no extra cost.

One of the biggest (and, in our opinion, tastiest) flops in fast food history, the Arch Deluxe was introduced in 1996 via the largest advertising budget in fast food history (at the time). Created by fine dining chef Andrew Selvaggio (pictured), it was intended to appeal to sophisticated adult palates. The burger consisted of a quarter-pound beef patty on a bakery-style potato bun, topped with peppered bacon, lettuce, tomato, American cheese, onions, ketchup and Dijonnaise. Diners said it was absolutely delicious, but it simply didn’t sell – and it was quickly discontinued.

Brazilian American tennis champion Bob Falkenburg founded Bob's in 1952, four years after winning the men's singles championship at Wimbledon. It was an ace move because almost 800 Bob’s restaurants are still serving fast food fans in Brazil today. The Big Bob is the most popular, possibly because it resembles a certain globally famous 'big' burger... This one has two beef patties, cheese, lettuce, onion and secret Big Bob sauce on a warm sesame bun.

This round-up wouldn’t be complete without giving a nod to the Whopper, arguably the world’s second most famous burger. The Whopper was actually launched by Burger King in 1957, pre-dating its Big Mac competitor by a decade. The hamburger has undergone several recipe revamps over the years – including changes to its portion size and the type of bun used – but its biggest selling point has always been the prominent flame-grilled flavour of the quarter-pound beef patty. The Whopper comes with mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, pickles, ketchup and sliced onion, though we consider the addition of cheese essential.

Quick kick-started its fast food empire in Belgium in 1971, but has since expanded across France and into Morocco. The jewel in the crown of the restaurant is the Giant burger, featuring two beef patties, melted Cheddar, onions, lettuce and Big Mac–style Giant sauce. In 2024, food delivery firm Deliveroo revealed that a Giant burger (with large fries) was one of the 100 top trending dishes ordered around the world.

Bembos was founded in 1988 and now has more than 100 locations across Peru. It's such a big deal that it became the first chain to open a fast food restaurant in the historic city of Cusco in 2007. The brand's charcoal-grilled burgers don’t shy away from local flavours, but the Extreme Burger is perhaps the most recognisable. It's a massive double burger with Edam cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayo. You should also get a side of the pepper-based ají sauce, which is ideal for dipping.

The burger connoisseur’s order of choice at McDonald’s, the Quarter Pounder with Cheese tastes markedly different from the other hamburgers on the menu. This is because it’s the only one made with fresh, unfrozen beef that’s cooked to order – a major recipe change implemented in 2018. As with all the best McDonald’s items, the burger is a simple but perfectly balanced affair, consisting of a 100% beef patty with two slices of cheese, fresh onions, pickles, mustard and tomato ketchup. It’s been a fan favourite since 1971 for a reason.

Offering a menu of Filipino flavours with an American twist, Jollibee has over 1,000 restaurants across the Philippines and several hundred more around the rest of the world. Flagship menu items include the peach and mango pie, a fried chicken meal called Chickenjoy and Jolly Spaghetti. But the best burger in the joint is the Champ, a brilliant bite featuring a third-pound patty with tomato, lettuce and cheese in a sesame seed bun.

Burger King’s (or, in Australia, Hungry Jack's) Angry Whopper is perhaps the most popular riff on the classic Whopper the chain has ever released. Featuring a flame-grilled patty topped with jalapeño slices, pepper jack cheese, spicy fried onions and fiery Angry Sauce, it was first introduced in the US in 2009 as a limited-edition item. It quickly gained a cult following, with fans begging Burger King to bring it back – which it did in 2012, 2013 and 2019. The Angry Whopper made its most recent comeback in Canada in January 2024.

Super cheesy and loaded with teriyaki sauce, this scrumptious limited-edition burger landed on McDonald’s menus in the US in the late 1980s. The Cheddar Melt – essentially a Quarter Pounder topped with onions, teriyaki sauce and an indulgent Cheddar cheese sauce – made a brief comeback in 2004 and 2014, but it's still one of the brand’s most sorely missed limited-run menu items. McDonald’s lovers in Brazil can still get their hands on a slightly adapted version, featuring a beef patty, Cheddar-flavoured sauce and onions sautéed in soy sauce.

Love a barbecue burger? The Double Western Bacon Cheeseburger from Carl's Jr (or Hardee's, depending on where you are) is one of the best fast food versions out there. It’s currently the chain's biggest burger, boasting a whopping 1,020 calories – and it comes with two meat patties, each topped with a slice of American cheese, two strips of bacon, two onion rings and a generous amount of sweet barbecue sauce.

One of the more premium fast food chains on our list, Wahlburgers – a joint venture from actor Mark Wahlberg and his brothers – has locations in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It has some seriously creative options on the menu, but fans rave about the O.F.D. Burger: a flavour bomb made with two beef patties, Swiss cheese, bacon, sautéed mushrooms and tomato jam. The name stands for 'Originally from Dorchester', an homage to the neighbourhood in Boston, Massachusetts where the Wahlberg boys grew up.

Hesburger is a big deal in Eastern, Central and Northern Europe, with almost 500 locations. At one point it was the largest fast food chain in Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – even bigger than McDonald’s. The chain's most famous item is the Double Burger, featuring two beef patties, Cheddar, ketchup, onion, pickles and lettuce. But it’s the mayonnaise that really takes it to another level. The Double Burger is topped with Hesburger's paprika and cucumber mayo for the perfect Finnish-ing touch.

Established in 1978, Supermac’s is an Irish institution with more than 100 locations throughout the country. In 2019, the chain even defeated McDonald's in a trademark battle over the name of Supermac's Mighty Mac burger. Featuring the one-two punch of ketchup and burger sauce, the Mighty Mac is not to be messed with.

A towering tribute to the beauty of bacon, the Baconator is a double cheeseburger topped with six strips of crispy bacon, American cheese, ketchup and mayo. The item was first introduced at Wendy's restaurants in 2007 to boost ailing sales – and it quickly became one of the fast food world’s most successful launches, with more than 68 million Baconators sold in less than a year. It continues to be a firm favourite, not just because of the huge amount of bacon it contains, but because Wendy's uses fresh beef that’s never frozen, and you can taste the quality.

A Canadian icon, Harvey’s has been serving up delicious flame-grilled burgers since its inception in 1959. The brand’s signature dish is the Angus Burger, using 100% Canadian beef to deliver a juicy bite. But the best thing about ordering a burger from Harvey's is that you can customise the toppings. Pile your handheld high with whatever you like from the garnish counter to create a burger just the way you like it.

The Big Mac debuted at McDonald's in Uniontown, Pennsylvania in 1967, offering local workers a more filling alternative to the existing options on the menu. It was an instant hit, and the burger was launched nationwide the following year. The recipe features two beef patties, a three-part sesame seed bun, Big Mac sauce, pickles, lettuce, chopped onion and cheese, and has barely changed over the years. However, in 2024, McDonald’s did make some minor improvements, including softer buns, meltier cheese and more sauce.

One of the more under-the-radar chains in our power ranking, Freddy’s was founded in 2002 in Wichita, Kansas, and quickly garnered a die-hard fanbase who raved about its perfectly juicy smashburgers, shoestring fries and gooey cheese curds. The burgers are cooked to order and smashed on the grill with plenty of seasoning – resulting in an irresistibly crispy, charred exterior and moist middle. The Original Double really showcases the quality of the beef, with two delicious patties, pickles, raw onion, American cheese and mustard on a toasted bun.

The pride of Texas, Whataburger has been slinging its signature hamburgers since 1950. The chain remains mostly focused around the Southern United States, with 75% of its locations in the Lone Star State. Texans rave about the burgers here, and it's easy to see why. The hearty Double Meat Whataburger is a triumph of simplicity, with the rich flavour of the beef shining through. The burger comes with just the right amount of lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles and mustard – but we say ask for double cheese to take it to the next level.

Smashburger didn’t invent the technique of smashing a burger on a sizzling grill to lock in flavour – but it did bring it into the mainstream. The Denver-born fast food chain was founded in 2007 and now has more than 200 outposts worldwide. For its burgers, Angus beef chuck steak is cut into slices and flavoured with a special seasoning blend that includes ground-up roast chicken skin. The result is a riot of flavour best experienced in the form of the Double Classic Smash (two juicy patties, American cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, pickles, Smash Sauce and ketchup).

Much-loved Japanese fast food chain MOS Burger aims to celebrate the country's food culture through American hamburgers. The most iconic item on the menu is the eponymous MOS Burger, which has a meaty patty of beef and pork and comes topped with a special meat sauce and sliced tomato. Those in the know say this particularly saucy burger is best eaten still in the wrapper – then you can dip your fries in the sauce left behind for a double hit of flavour.

Gus Belt opened the first Steak ‘n Shake location in Normal, Illinois in 1934 – famously grinding the beef in front of his customers. This move highlighted the quality and freshness of Steak n' Shake's burgers, inspiring the slogan ‘In Sight It Must Be Right’. The chain has attempted to expand into Europe and the Middle East over the years, and the quality of the burgers on the concise menu remains high. Our pick, the decadent Butter Double Steakburger, consists of two smash-grilled steak burgers topped with American cheese and grilled onions and finished with melted butter.

In New Mexico, it's all about the green chile. Native to the state and loved for its zesty, subtly sweet flavour, this tangy pepper is roasted, peeled and chopped, then used to top burgers in restaurants all over the region. Albuquerque-based Blake's Lotaburger is a fairly small chain with branches concentrated in the Southwestern US – but its LOTA Burger New Mexico Style brings fans double meat patties, melty cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, mustard and pickles, plus a generous serving of the spicy speciality. It’s a unique treat you won’t find anywhere else.

Fat Phill's opened in the Netherlands in 2019, and since then it's been quietly taking the fast food world by storm. The chain has 18 locations in its home country, and another restaurant opened in London in December 2024. Food is prepared fresh in front of diners, and the customisable menu allows you to triple or quadruple the patties. But the burger that started it all is the Double Cheeseburger, featuring two smashed patties, lettuce, tomato, pickle, Cheddar and Phill's sauce.

Founded in San Antonio, Texas in 1979, this relatively small fast food chain has branches in the US, the Middle East and Central America. It's renowned for the hearty size and freshness of its burgers; the buns are baked in the kitchen every morning, and the meat is ground in-house. When it comes to customising your burger, order the original Fuddruckers burger (available in four sizes), pick your cheese (options include Cheddar, pepper Jack and blue), then pile it with as many – or as few – extras as you like from the Fuddruckers toppings bar. 

The SmokeShack features a sturdy but fluffy potato bun stuffed with a juicy, charred beef patty, applewood smoked bacon, chopped cherry peppers and Shake Shack's signature ShackSauce, a slightly spicy blend of ketchup, mayo, mustard and pickle brine. The chain's more famous ShackBurger is also great, but we think the perfect balance of flavours makes the SmokeShack all the more special. Founded in New York City in 2001, Shake Shack now has over 400 branches globally – yet its burgers remain as consistently delicious as ever.

This hearty burger is available in sizes ranging from small to XXXL (which contains three enormous patties, coming in at one and a half pounds' worth of meat). But it’s not just about size at Fatburger; devotees of the chain, which was founded in California and now has locations scattered across the globe, say the quality of the made-to-order burgers is akin (or even superior) to that of In-N-Out. For us, the go-to order is the Original Medium Fatburger, which is just the right size, with one succulent patty and all the classic toppings.

Generally considered more upmarket than other burger joints, Five Guys broke the mould when it opened in the 1980s, offering diners an entirely new fast food experience that showcased freshly cooked, juicy beef burgers with unlimited free toppings. Today the thriving chain is one of the world’s best-loved burger brands, with more than 1,700 locations globally. The concise menu has four basic burger options, but we say keep it simple with the cheeseburger, so you can really appreciate the flavour of that amazing beef.

A Midwestern favourite, butter burgers boast a historic preparation style that dates back to 1885 when the burgers were literally smothered in butter before serving. The version at family-run Wisconsin burger chain Culver's is a lighter interpretation (the bun is buttered, rather than the meat), but it still captures the glorious decadence of the traditional recipe. The burger is always fresh and cooked to order, with a perfect char and juicy middle. The original, served with real American cheese (made in Wisconsin), red onion, pickles and sliced tomato, is all you could ever want in a fast food burger.

Despite only having locations in select parts of the US, In-N-Out is a global sensation, renowned for teasing fans with occasional international pop-ups. But the hype is absolutely justified; the burgers at the California-born chain are impossibly fresh-tasting – and each individual element is thoughtfully prepared, from the tangy burger 'spread' to the perfectly squishy buns. Amazingly, it’s also one of the cheapest fast food burgers available. Our order of choice is the Double-Double, but make sure you ask for it Animal Style, which means you'll get mustard cooked into the patties, plus grilled onions and extra sauce.

Now discover the fascinating stories behind America's lesser-known burger styles

Last updated by Luke Paton.